S2: Matters of Life & Death Spec
 Why Muslims believe in life after death and how beliefs about life after death affect
their lives.
 Non-religious reasons for believing in life after death (near-death experiences, ghosts,
mediums, evidence of reincarnation).
 Why some people do not believe in life after death.
 The nature of abortion, including current British legislation, and why abortion is a
controversial issue.
 Different Muslim attitudes to abortion and the reasons for them.
 The nature of euthanasia including current British legislation, and why euthanasia is a
controversial issue.
 Muslim attitudes to euthanasia and the reasons for them.
 Arguments for and against the media being free to criticise what religions say about
matters of life and death.
 The causes of world poverty.
 How and why one Muslim agency is trying to end world poverty.
 How an issue arising from matters of life and death has been presented in one form of
the media, for example in a television or radio programme, or in a film, or in the
national press; including whether the treatment was fair to religious beliefs and
religious people.
Unit 4: S2 Matters of Life & Death
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S2: Matters of Life & Death Keywords
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abortion the removal of a foetus from the womb before it can survive
akhirah Muslim beliefs about life after death
al’Jannah Heaven or paradise (literally the garden)
assisted suicide providing a seriously ill person with the means to commit
suicide
barzakh the time between death and the Last Day
euthanasia the painless killing of someone dying from a painful disease
non-voluntary euthanasia ending someone’s life painlessly when they are
unable to ask, but you have good reason for thinking they would want you to
do so
paranormal unexplained things which are thought to have spiritual causes eg
ghosts, mediums
quality of life the idea that life must have some benefits for it to be worth
living
resurrection the belief that, after death, the body stays in the grave until the
end of the world when it is raised
sanctity of life the belief that life is holy and belongs to Allah
voluntary euthanasia ending life painlessly when someone in great pain asks
for death
Unit 4: S2 Matters of Life & Death
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Akhirah
 Islam teaches that Allah (God) has
full control over all that happens.
Nothing can happen unless
permitted by Allah.
 “Nor can a soul die except by
Allah’s leave. The term being
fixed as by writing.” (Surah
3:145)
 However, Allah has also given
humans free will; people are able
to choose between right and
wrong, and are responsible for
their actions. This life is a
preparation for the eternal life to
come (Akhirah). Humans have one
life and it is up to them how they
choose to live it.
 Muslims (followers of Islam)
believe that on a day decided by
Allah, and known only to Allah,
life on earth will come to an end
and Allah will destroy everything.
On this day all the people who
have ever lived will be raised from
the dead and will face judgement
by Allah.
 Allah will balance the good deeds
a person has done in their life
against the bad deeds.
 If the bad things outweigh the
good, then the person will be
punished in hell (Jahannam).
When Allah is making a
judgement, even a person’s
intentions (niyyah) are taken into
account.
Unit 4: S2 Matters of Life & Death
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Near death experiences
• A near death experience is an
experience that is reported by
people who clinically die, or
come close to actual death and
are revived.
• People all over the world who
have had these experiences have
many things in common in their
stories –
• One such thing is that people say
they felt themselves float out of
their body. Patients in hospital
often describe looking down on
themselves from above.
• Others describe the feeling of
travelling down a tunnel towards
a very bright light.
• They say it is peaceful feeling,
warm and with no sense of
time.
• Some people have said that
when they died they met beings
of light or angels.
• Nearly everyone has heard a
gentle voice telling them to go
back, that it isn’t their time to
die.
• None of these people are
particularly religious.
• They are all normal people.
• They have DIED ... And yet they
all say that death is not the end.
Unit 4: S2 Matters of Life & Death
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Arguments For and Against the
Existence of Life After Death
Arguments For...
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Arguments Against...
1.
Islam believe that just the soul survives death
Islam teach that this life is not all there is and
(not the body) In which case how would
there is life after death
people recognise and communicate with each
other in heaven?
Paranormal – lots of cultures teach belief in a
2.
There is no empirical evidence for life after
spirit world (ghosts). Through spiritualists
death. No one has returned from the dead to
(mediums), people believe they can contact
describe the afterlife.
the dead.
3.
Death literally means an end to life. Therefore
life after death is a contradiction.
Many people claim to have had near death
4.
The medical condition of being brain dead
experiences when they have been faced with a
when the body is kept alive on a life support
bright light leading to the afterlife.
machine is evidence that there is no such
thing as life after death.
The body and mind are separate. The body is
5.
Some philosophers think that the concept of
physical unlike the mind and so some people
life after death is the result of people being
believe the mind can survive the death of the
unable to bear the idea that death brings the
end of personal existence forever.
body.
6.
Death is part of life. We accept that plants die
People who believe in God believe that God is
in winter and their remains nourish the
outside time and mortality, therefore belief in
ground for new plants in spring. No one
suggests that plants go to heaven so why
life after death seems possible.
suggest for it for people.
Some philosophers argue that the only
concept of life after death can make sense of
all the injustice and unfairness that people
suffer during their lives.
Unit 4: S2 Matters of Life & Death
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Abortion
Abortion & the law
 The 1967 Abortion Act says an
abortion can take place if TWO
doctors agree on one of the
following reasons:
 The mothers life is at risk
 There is risk of injury to mothers
physical or mental health
 There is risk to another child
 There is a risk the baby may be
born seriously handicapped
 The 1990 Act says abortion cannot
take place after 24 weeks of
pregnancy unless the mothers life is
at risk
 A father has NO rights concerning
abortion
Foetus Development – Key Facts
 Week 0 – Conception
 Week 4 - Heart begins to beat
 Week 12 – Bones and major organs
formed
 Week – 21 – Viability – Foetus could
survive outside of mothers womb
with medical support
 Week 39 – Birth
 Abortion is a controversial issues
because Women should have the
right to choose what happens to
their bodies but does a women
have the right to take human a life
and the foetus is a potential human
being. Are the the rights of the
unborn child are equal to those of
the mother or are the mothers
rights greater?
Unit 4: S2 Matters of Life & Death
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The Muslim Position on Abortion.
"Kill not your children
for fear of want; it
is We who provide
sustenance for
them as well as for
you; for verily
killing them is a
great sin.
(Surah 17:31).
‘It is Allah who gives
you life, then gives
you death; then He
will gather you for the
Days of Judgement’
(Surah 45:26)
No sever of
wombrelationship ties
will ever enter
paradise.
Hadith
‘Do not take life
which Allah has
made sacred
except for a just
cause’.
(Surah 17:33)
Muslims believe that abortion
IS acceptable if the aim is to
save the life of the mother, or
if the child will have a serious
deformity of disease.
A soul cannot
die unless Allah
gives His
permission, the
term being
fixed by writing.
(Surah 3:145)
"when semen is
injected into the
womb where it
merges with the
ovum and becomes
predisposed to
receive life".
Al- Ghazali
The foetus is only ensouled after 120 days.
Unit 4: S2 Matters of Life & Death
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Euthanasia
The law & British Law
 Non -voluntary Euthanasia is legal in
the UK with a High Court ruling. This
ruling was established in the case of
Tony Bland who was a brain-dead
victim of Hillsborough
 Voluntary Euthanasia is illegal in
the UK. To kill yourself is suicide and
this is illegal regardless on motive,
anyone who helps you is guilty if
murder in the UK. It is legal in
Holland and Switzerland
 The main reason for euthanasia is
that a person’s quality of life is very
poor. For example, they are unable
to move or look after themselves.
Arguments for euthanasia
 A persons life is their own, you should
have control over your death.
 It’s a way of loving your neighbour ...to
relieve their pain
 Pain and sickness can rob you of your
dignity
 It is pointless using up expensive
medical services for people who are
dying anyway
Arguments against euthanasia
 Life is a gift from God, only God can give
it or take it away
 Palliative care prepares people for a
peaceful death
 People may feel pressured into
euthanasia by feeling like a nuisance
 People may recover and live
Unit 4: S2 Matters of Life & Death
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Muslim attitudes towards euthanasia
 Islam is totally opposed to euthanasia. The
Qur’an says that Allah created all life and
everything belongs to him:
 “To Allah belongs the kingdom of the heavens
and the earth. He creates what He pleases.”
Surah 42:50
 Because of this, Muslim people are forbidden to
kill themselves:
 “Destroy not yourselves. Surely Allah is ever
merciful to you” Surah 4:29
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Should the media be free to criticise what religions
say about matters of life and death.
For
 Issue of life and death effect
everyone and all views should
be explored even if Islam
disagree with them.
 Opinions are divided and it is
important that we know what
people think.
 Controversial issues need to
be discusses openly
 People have a right to know
about developments in the
issue of life and death.
Against
 The media can be biased
against religious teaching
and this kind of unfair
reporting does not help
people to understand issues
of life and death.
 Some people in the media
my try and shock the public
by presenting extreme or
exaggerated situations .
Unit 4: S2 Matters of Life & Death
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Causes of Poverty
 Droughts and Flooding: Besides the immediate
Social Inequality: One of the more entrenched
destruction caused by natural events such as
sources of poverty throughout the world is
hurricanes, environmental forces often cause
social inequality that stems from cultural ideas
acute periods of crisis by destroying crops and
about the relative worth of different genders,
animals.
races, ethnic groups, and social classes.
 Natural Disasters: Natural disasters such as
Inherited Debt
hurricanes and earthquakes have devastated
communities throughout the world.
 Centralization of Power: In many developing
countries, political power is disproportionately Poverty
lack of education
centralized. Instead of having a network of
political representatives distributed equally
throughout society. For example, in these
situations politicians make decisions about
more loans
places that they are unfamiliar with, lacking
sufficient knowledge about the context to design
lack of work
effective and appropriate policies and programs.
 Corruption: Corruption often accompanies
centralization of power, when leaders are not
accountable to those they serve
Unfair trade
lack of housing
 Warfare: Warfare contributes to more
entrenched poverty by diverting scarce
Unit 4: S2 Matters of Life & Death
resources from fighting poverty to maintaining a
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military.
The Vicious
Circle of
poverty
He who eats
and drinks
whilst his
brother is
hungry is not
one of us
Teachings
Sadaqah
Give from your
wealth to
relative,
orphans, to the
needy…
(The Qur’an)
Organisation
• Means charity
•Muslims encouraged
but not forced to give.
•It is up to the person
to choose how much to
give.
•Can be time or advice
instead of money that
is given.
Muslim Aid
Zakat
•A duty that all Muslims have.
•Muslims pay 2.5% of anything left after
buying food and paying bills.
•Allah will punish people who don’t pay it
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 Muslim Aid is a premier British
Muslim relief and development
agency, guided by the teachings of
Islam, endeavours to tackle poverty
and its causes by developing
innovative and sustainable solutions
that enable individuals and their
communities to live with dignity and
by supporting initiatives that
promote economic and social
justice.
 Working in over 70 countries across
Africa, Asia and Europe, Muslim Aid
is striving to help the poor overcome
the suffering endured due to natural
disasters and lack of life's basic
necessities
 They work with all in need,
regardless of their race, religion,
gender, nationality or political
opinion.
• . Whilst responding to emergencies is
one of their major priorities, we also
work on strategic programmes to
eliminate poverty that focus upon:
– Education
– Skills training
– Provision of clean water
– Healthcare
– Income generation projects
• These projects ensure that individuals
can have access to basic necessities
and the skills necessary to generate
an income so that they are not
permanently dependent on aid
agencies for food and shelter.
Unit 4: S2 Matters of Life & Death
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How an issue arising from matters of life and
death has been presented in Ghost Town;
including whether the treatment was fair to
religious beliefs and religious people.
Fair to Islamic belief
Unfair to Islamic belief
 Shows that there is a life after
death.
 People appear to go to a good
place after they die – you see
a bright light and people seem
to go up to heaven
 The film is a comedy and is not
seriously teaching people
about life after death.
 The film is not critical of Islam
or any religious beliefs
 When people die they do not go
to barzakh and wait for
Judgement day
 It does not appear to be Allah’s
choice whether people go to
paradise.
 Islam does not believe that
people become ghosts
 Where people go in the afterlife
does on seem to depend on their
good or bad actions
Unit 4: S2 Matters of Life & Death
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